CONTINUATION OF CHRIST'S DISCOURSE AT THE LAST SUPPER.
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth, do I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid” (John 14, 27).
First Prelude: In spirit enter the Cenacle and hear Jesus promising peace to His disciples.
Second Prelude: O Divine Saviour, give me great esteem of Thy peace, that I may strive to acquire it, or to preserve and increase it.
First Point
THE PEACE OF THE SAVIOUR
The peace which Christ promised the disciples and through them all the faithful is a triple peace: with God, with our neighbor, and with ourselves. Peace with God consists in the complete and all-around conformity with, and abandonment to, the holy Will of God. God has manifested His Will through the commandments, the regulations and teachings of His Holy Church, and to religious in a particular manner through the direction of their superiors. Who desires to taste of this peace must strive under all circumstances, be they agreeable or not, to conform his will to the Will of God. Nothing happens without divine dispensations; even the trivial, insignificant incidents of daily life are a part of the loving economy of God, leading us on to our destination, eternal happiness. In virtue of this resignation, we repose in the arms of Divine Providence, like a child in the arms of its mother, in deep, secure peace.
What efforts have I made to acquire peace with God? In other words, how have I conformed to the Will of God, in whatever form it accosted me? Do I see the loving hand of God’s paternal Providence in the daily little happenings? Have I not frequently been dissatisfied when God’s Will was manifested to me in the wishes and injunctions of my superiors?
Genuine peace with God is always accompanied by peace with one’s neighbor. His peace is firmly rooted in the love and unity of hearts. Who wishes to possess it, as St. Paul tells us, must live in peace and harmony with all men as much as lies in his power. Such a one must comply faithfully with the fundamental precepts of love and peace: Give your neighbor nothing to bear; bear patiently with his faults. Never inflict a wrong on your neighbor; grant him all that is commensurate with the duty of charity. As a religious, bound to strive for perfection, I may not rest satisfied with having thus complied, but I must be prepared even to forego a privilege cheerfully, or to relinquish a right, in order to preserve peace.
With what solicitude do I observe these regulations? Have I never disturbed peace by excessive sensitiveness, ill-humor, or by stubborn, rigid adherence to my preconceived views?
Peace with oneself consists in the testimony of a good conscience, in the subjection of the senses and the passions to reason, and reason to faith. Without God’s special grace, we shall never attain to perfect peace on this earth. We shall never succeed in completely subjugating or extirpating our passions. Even the Apostle speaks of a law in his members, contrary to the law of the spirit, which holds him captive under the law of sin (Rom. 7, 23). If it was impossible even for the “Vessel of Election” (Acts 9, 15) to neutralize this law, it will surely be the more impossible for us. We must seek peace here on earth in the uninterrupted struggle with our passions. God is pleased with us if we subjugate them merely to the extent of gaining their control. “It is by resisting the passions, therefore, and not by serving them, that true peace is to be found” (Foll. Bk. I, Ch. 6).
Second Point
EXCELLENCE OF THE SAVIOUR’S PEACE
To bring us this peace, Christ became Man. His whole lifework was, in reality, a work of peace and reconciliation. He was promised as Prince of Peace, and was such indeed, when, as St. Paul sublimely says: “He reconciled all things unto Himself, making peace through the Blood of His Cross” (Col. 1, 20). At His birth, peace was announced to the world by the angelic hosts. In the interest of peace, He frequently evaded His enemies. At the end of His life, shortly before His passion, He promised this peace to his disciples, calling it “His peace.” “Peace be with you!” was our Saviour’s first greeting, when He appeared to His Apostles on the evening of the resurrection. How highly Jesus valued peace! Does not this prove sufficiently its intrinsic worth?
Without this threefold peace, the heart of man is like a sea, agitated by a violent storm. The Holy Ghost cannot rule such a heart with His grace. A heart disturbed by passions, is callous to His inspirations—a further proof of the excellence of peace and the necessity of making an effort to acquire it.
Affections: O Divine Saviour, Thou Prince of Peace, eternal thanks to Thy infinite love, for the inestimable gift of Thy divine peace. Let me ever become deeply penetrated with its value and excellence. Grant me the grace never to grow weary in striving for peace, and always gladly to apply the means necessary to secure the possession of Thy peace, so as never to lose it.
Resolution: I will endeavor to remove the hindrances that have thus far opposed the Saviour’s peace in my heart.
Spiritual Bouquet: “My peace I leave you.”
Prayer: Take, O Lord . . .
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